PN Community: challenges and opportunities

25 May, 2023

Foodvalley’s international Personalised Nutrition Community came together yesterday in Wageningen to discuss the status and current challenges and opportunities in the Personalised Nutrition sector.  

Building on last year’s Personalised Nutrition (PN) Position Paper, Community Partners discussed their views on the ongoing importance of creating a common language to help the PN ecosystem flourish and bring the consumer an optimal PN offering. There is currently still a lack of clarity and worldwide consensus on the differences between Personalised and Precision nutrition. The terms intertwine and will likely continue to do so for the time being. In Foodvalley’s PN Community, the term remains “Personalised Nutrition” for now. The PN definition published by Foodvalley and 53 partners in October 2021 is still seen as correct and valid.   

During the meeting, Community Partners unanimously agreed that PN measures individual-specific information that is science-based. The Community came to a specification of what they meant with “individual specific information”.   

They concluded with an addition to the 2021 definition. The individual-specific information can be 1. individual-environmental factors such as taste preferences, budget, and cooking habits, as well as 2. physiological factors like the microbiome, DNA, hormones and nutrient status.  

Whatever science-based individual-specific information is measured, it is crucial that the end user is the focal point. Any advice to change eating habits must fit seamlessly with the consumer, meeting the needs, motivation and capabilities of the end user.  

Personalised nutrition is forecasted to see an annual growth rate between 12-15% (2023-2027). Now is the time to step into PN’s opportunities for supporting consumers to move towards a healthier and more sustainable choice.  

Foodvalley’s Personalised Nutrition Community supports a mix of cross-sectoral organisations working on personalised nutrition solutions. Together, the partners boost business in personalised nutrition by uncovering and tackling the challenges too complicated to tackle on your own.